Dacono residents have choices

Residents in the city of Dacono will vote for a new mayor and two positions for council in November, as well as a ballot question seeking pay increases for the mayor and council members to take affect in January.

The mayor’s wages for the month are $175 and the increase will bring it up to $250. City council members are paid $100; the ballot measure would raise it to $150 per month.

Mayoral candidates are current Mayor Wade Carlson and Larry Johnston.

Carlson, who refused to give age, has been the mayor of Dacono for six years. He has 31 years in various public policy decisions, served on St. Mary’s School Board for 16 years, was president of Mountain View Fire Department Board for eight years, and was on the board for the Colorado Association of School Boards.

“There are a lot of things coming down the pipeline that I’d like to be part of,” Carlson said. “I hope to focus on economic development, services, shopping opportunities and jobs for the people that live in the area and I’d like to bring the schools into the city.”

Johnston, 56, has lived in Dacono off and on since 1960. He graduated with a BSDA from Regis University with an emphasis on international finance. He works in material logistics and procurement.

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Johnston hopes to focus on smart growth vs. the no-growth policy he said he sees from the city council now.

“It’s inevitable that we grow,” Johnston said. “We need to find a good fit for the community without bringing everybody in.”

Johnston said according to vital statistics there has been a decline in commercial and light industry business in Dacono over the years.

“Our income is not keeping up with our spending,” he said. “We continue to hire consultants but we don’t see projects come to fruition.”

Four candidates are running for vacant council positions:

Charles L. Sigmon, 28, has lived in Dacono all his life. He is married with two children, works as a supervisor for Sam’s Club and owns his own construction company. Sigmon hopes to bring back an open door policy to the council.

“People are telling me they are not being listened to,” he said. “I hope to bring the identity back to Dacono and I hope to work on growth so that we bring in tax revenue.”

Richard Baker, 69, a resident of Dacono for 18 years, is a former chief of police for the city from 1989-1992, former chief of police for Erie for 14 years and has worked for RTD for 10 years. His vision for the city is based on reducing taxes.

“We are in a need of business to come into our city,” Baker said. “We have a mill levy of 101 and that’s a tad too high. I want to be able to help the people because there are a lot of retired or fixed income residents in Dacono who can’t afford the taxes in place now.”